Like Love
by PKFlash
Summary: After the events of Mother 3, Fuel is living by himself inside Sunshine Forest. Then, something happens and he falls for someone he shouldn't have. FuelxLucas. Rating might go up?
1. Chapter 1

One litre of gasoline, siphoned from a broken-down pork bean.

To that, slowly add in pieces of Styrofoam, ripped from the inside of a Pigmask's helmet.

Stir well. Continue adding Styrofoam until it reaches a jelly-like consistency.

Homemade napalm in five minutes. They don't call him Fuel for nothing.

"Now, I just need a lighter," he thought. This simple phrase makes Fuel sad. His dad's name was Lighter. He passed away a year ago.

Fuel finds a box of matches in the kitchen, and hurries back upstairs to continue with his experiment. He strikes the match, and lets it glow brilliantly for a moment before dropping it into his napalm. It explodes into a brilliant orange flame that is reflected in Fuel's brown eyes.

Fuel is home alone. After the pulling of the final needle and the collapse of New Pork City, he'd been living back in his cabin in Sunshine Forest, which had to be repaired multiple times to this date.

One time, nearly four years ago, it'd been burned down by the Pigmask Army.

Another time, about two years ago, it'd been struck by lightning. Also by the Pigmasks.

Fuel remembers the day he was trapped on the second floor of his cabin. Flint had to rescue him, bravely ramming into fallen pieces of wood to free a path to safety. They were both covered in soot afterwards.

He wonders how Flint's kids are doing. Well, kid, in the singular. Claus is dead. He hasn't seen Lucas in ages, either. Ever since Lucas returned to Tazmily, he'd been an emotional wreck.

During his reminiscing, Fuel realizes that the orange flame has spread from his bucket of napalm to the wooden table. He quickly returns to reality.

"Oh, shoot."

The table quickly becomes a bonfire, spreading to the floor and furniture. Panicking, Fuel tries to get to the stairs, but trips. When he gets back on his feet, the stairwell is blocked off by a curtain of fire.

In seconds, the entire room is alit. The air is filled with an acrid, black smoke. Fuel can hardly breathe, and he begins to lose consciousness.

The window. He has to get to the window. Opening it would only fan the flames, but the other option is suffocation. He doesn't make it. His mind fades in and out of focus, and then blanks out.

"Fuel?"

Fuel opens his eyes. Staring back at him are a pair of bright blue eyes on the face of an angel. The angel has blonde hair.

"Fuel, get up. Hurry."

"Nnn…?"

A hand shakes him on the shoulders.

"Fuel!"

Everything is slowly returning to focus. The room is black, red and orange, like a fiery hell. Holding Fuel up is Lucas.

"You have to get up! The house will collapse."

Fuel tried. He couldn't. No oxygen, no energy. He shook his head weakly. "…can't."

Lucas looked around them. The house was already smouldering. Pieces of the floor and ceiling were crumbling to bits.

"Okay. I'll carry you. Hop on."

Fuel climbed onto Lucas' back and wrapped his arms tightly around Lucas' neck.

"Ready?"

Fuel made some sort of noise to indicate "yes".

"Okay." Lucas gets up, piggy-backs Fuel down the stairs, and then out the door. Occasionally, he has to use his PSI to remove a piece of debris or an obstructing flame. Once outside, the two collapse into a heap onto the forest floor, Fuel on top of Lucas.

The forest air is cool and clean. Fuel takes a deep breath, and looks down to realize that he is lying directly on top of Lucas.

"Um, Fuel… could you…?"

Fuel flushed, but no one can tell. The two boys are covered in soot from head to toe.

"Oh! Sorry." He rolls off.

They lie down for a while, coughing out their smoke-filled lungs until nothing is left.

Fuel spoke first: "Lucas?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks a lot. For saving me."

At that moment, looking at Lucas' soot covered face, a couple of feelings stir within Fuel.

The first is déjà vu. He'd been in this exact situation before.

The second is a strange sort of attachment that one feels when another person saves your life. Something like love.

"Oh," Lucas blushes, but once again, no one can tell. "No problem."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Weird pairing? Nah. According to Earthbound Wiki, Fuel is around 15, and Lucas is 12. That works for me, I guess, so long as I don't visualize Fuel as some pubescent teenager. Anyways, hope you enjoyed. Reviews are nice :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Lucas and Fuel stare at each other's soot covered bodies. They are completely black, except for the whites of their eyes and the colour of their pupils. Simultaneously, they burst out laughing. A stifled giggle at first, and then they are rolling on the floor, pounding the grass with their fists. It's been a while since either of them laughed in earnest.

"We should," Fuel says, between hiccups, "We should probably clean ourselves up."

"Yeah," Lucas says, wiping a tear from his eye. In doing so, he leaves a streak of clean skin on his temple. "There's a hot spring around here, I think."

The two of them walk west through sunshine forest, passing toppled trees, broken ground and a collapsed cabin: the aftermath of the seventh needle.

Finally, they reach a pool of hot water steaming on the ground. There is no one here except for a frog.

Fuel looks around awkwardly, unsure where to begin. Lucas, meanwhile, is already stripping out of his clothes, throwing them onto a pile on the floor.

"Lucas? Are you just gonna, you know…"

Lucas is completely naked now. There are clear lines where his soot-covered skin meets the pale, soft skin that was protected by his clothing. "Sure, why not?" he asks.

"Oh…" Not wanting to be awkward, Fuel also strips and slides into the hot spring.

"Ahhh…"

"This hot spring hasn't changed in forever, right?"

Fuel nods. "Still piping hot, as usual."

The soot floats away from their skin, turning the water gray and murky.

"I used to come here all the time," Lucas continues. "When my family went to visit Grandpa Alec, we'd always stop here for a break." A pause. "It was fun, with Mum, Dad and Claus."

Fuel doesn't know what to say. He feels that Lucas is reaching a sensitive topic. "That must've been nice."

"Yeah…" Lucas lowered his head so that the water was up to his lower lip. "Claus and I used to have breath holding contests. We'd put our heads into the water and see who could stay in the longest." Another pause. "One time we nearly passed out, and Dad had to pull us from the water. Claus would… Claus would always win."

And with that, Lucas breaks into a gentle sob. Amidst all the steam and water, it is hard to tell if there are tears in his eyes.

Fuel looks around desperately, unsure of how to handle the situation. All he could find was the green frog, staring blankly at him through tiny black eyes.

"Um… Lucas…"

No response. So Fuel wades over to Lucas and wraps a warm arm around his shoulders. "It's okay."

Lucas clutches Fuel tightly and cries silently into his shoulder. They are pressed right up against each other now, and it makes Fuel nervous. He doesn't dare to push Lucas away, however.

Eventually, Lucas calms down and simply rests his head against Fuel's, closing his eyes. Lucas whispers softly into Fuel's ear: "Dad's gone mad lately. He ran off into the mountains. I've always been his least favourite."

Fuel puts a hand into Lucas' hair and strokes it reassuringly. "Well, at least your Dad's alive."

Lucas shifts a bit to make himself comfortable. "Oh yeah… I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

Lucas perks up all of a sudden surprising Fuel. "Hey! Why don't you become my dad?"

Fuel tilts his head. "What?"

"Well, we're both what's left of our families… It'd be nice to have someone to care for me."

"I can't be your dad. I'm not old enough."

"Brother, then. You can be my older brother!"

Fuel looked around, avoiding Lucas' gaze. "Um…"

Lucas can tell that Fuel clearly doesn't want to. He frowns and his shoulders slump, disheartened. Lucas says, "I just… It sucks to be alone. I want to have a family again. I mean, it's okay if you don't want to…"

Fuel looks intently into Lucas' teary eyes and worn-out expression. He deserves more, Fuel thinks, he deserves more than what he's been served his entire life…

"Fine," Fuel says, "I'll do it. I'll live with you."

It is hard to describe how brightly Lucas' face lights up at this moment. "YESS! Thank you!" And then he does the unexpected: he grabs Fuel by the shoudlers and kisses him on the cheek, so close to Fuel's mouth that he gets startled. Luckily, they are both already red as grapefruits from the heat of the hot spring, so no one can tell that Fuel is flushing.

Fuel smiles wryly, "You're welcome, brother?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Fuel has such a big brother image :) By the way, tell me if writing in present tense is weird :\ I'm not used to it either, but my English teacher always told me to do so for certain stories. Reviews are nice xD**


	3. Chapter 3

For a move-in, there isn't much to move. All of Fuel's possessions are reduced to ashes, and he is only left with the clothes on his back. Which, coincidentally, are practically made of ash themselves.

"Stay right there- I'll find something for you to wear," Lucas says.

They are at Lucas' house. Fuel looks around the interior of the home. Everything is disorganized. The fireplace is dusty and unkempt. Clothes, books, and machine parts lay strewn on the floor. Drawers and cabinets hang half-open.

"Here," Lucas says, "This is my Dad's. I think it'll fit."

"Thanks," Fuel replies, taking off his own clothes. Flint's clothes are too big. Two inches of sleeve extend past Fuel's hands. The shirt's hem drops down too his knees. It looks like a dress.

Lucas giggles. "Close enough."

"Hardly. Say, Lucas, isn't your home a little… y'know… messy?"

Lucas tilts his head. "Huh?"

Fuel gestures at the room, raising his eyebrows. "I mean… I could help clean it up a bit if you want."

Lucas blinks twice. "Fuel… what are you talking about? It's spotless. I always make sure it's super clean, in case Dad ever comes home."

Fuel is taken aback. "But…"

Lucas cuts him off. "It's getting late. Let's sleep."

/

Fuel wakes up to the feeling of something heavy on his chest. His eyelids are heavy with exhaustion.

"Mmmff?"

He opens his eyes and finds himself staring into bright blue ones. It's Lucas.

"Good morning, sleepyhead."

"Whattimeizit?"

"Time for you to wake up. C'mon, we've got a lot to do today."

It's a beautiful day. The sun is shining brightly, the birds are singing, and off in the distance, the sound of ocean waves can be heard crashing against the cliffs. It is a scene reminiscent of Tazmily's old days – no pig masks or machines.

Many of the original buildings are already up. Lucas and Fuel enter one of them, the bakery, to pick up some nut bread and eggs. Next, they visit the Bazaar to pick up some clothes.

The owner, Thomas, greets them enthusiastically. "Ah, Lucas! I haven't seen you in a while! Like… a long while! In fact, I was almost sure… never mind. And is that you, Fuel?"

Fuel smiles. "Yup."

"Alright then, how can I help you two?"

Lucas steps forward. "Brother Fuel needs some clothes. And some soap."

Thomas raises his eyebrows. "Brother, eh? Brother? Fuel is your brother? Well, you sure like to joke now, right Lucas? Haha… of course, you can't just make anyone your br-"

Thomas stops dead in his tracks. The reason: Lucas is glaring at him with a look of seething, fuming anger.

"Fuel… is my brother. He's always been," Lucas says, barely parting his lips to speak. And yet, Thomas catches every word.

"Ah… well, of course. Haha…"

The rest of the purchase goes by in silence. Fuel buys two shirts, a pair of denim shorts and a set of pyjamas.

"C-come again!"

Lucas' mood lightens up the instant they leave the bazaar. "Yay!" he says, "Now you can finally change out of my Dad's clothes."

/

Days pass peacefully. Slowly, Fuel get used to his new home and Lucas, who is becoming more and attached to him. The more Fuel gets to know Lucas, the more he realizes that something isn't right. He can't point his finger on what specifically, but he knows something about the younger boy is abnormal.

It has been a week since the day of Fuel's move in, and the two of them decide to go to the beach. Lucas leads Fuel to a secluded beachside on the other side of Sunshine Forest.

"Why don't we just go to the one near town?"

Lucas continues to smile, dragging Fuel by one hand. "That one… that one's no fun."

The spend the day collecting seashells, watching crabs scuttle along the sand, and building a sand castle the vaguely resembles Osohe. By the time it's finished, the sun is high up in the sky and both of them have worked up a sweat.

"Lucas…" Fuel pants, wiping sweat from his forehead, "It's hot. Wanna go for a swim?"

Lucas nods. They remove their clothes, folding them neatly on the sand, and wade out into the blue sea.

"Brrrr! The water is freezing!" Fuel shivers, clutching his elbows.

"Haha. You'll get used to it if you just plunge right in. See, look!" Lucas submerges his entire body into the water and then resurfaces. "See?"

Fuel looks sceptical. "I think… I think I'll just walk in slowly and let my body adjust."

Lucas frowns. "Alright."

But as soon as Fuel is waist deep into the water, Lucas grabs his legs, dragging both of them into the cold ocean. Fuel resurfaces, gasping. "W-what was t-that for! ... hey… it isn't so bad now."

"Told you."

They continue out into the blue ocean, leaving the sandy beach behind them. Eventually, Lucas is up to his chin in the water.

"Want to go back now?" Fuel asks.

Lucas shakes his head. "No… deeper."

"You can hardly stand up as is."

Lucas frowns. "Carry me."

"What?"

"Let me onto your back."

"Th- that's… I dunno. I probably can't lift you, you're really heavy…"

Lucas completely disregards this, climbing onto Fuel's back. The feeling of Lucas' bare skin on his own makes Fuel blush a little.

"Deeper," Lucas repeats.

So Fuel continues until he too is up to his neck in the water.

"This deep enough? Or should we just both drown?"

Lucas giggles. "No, this is enough. Let's just stay here."

They stay there for a while, the occasional wave gently crashing into both of their faces.

"Hey Fuel…" Lucas begins.

"What is it?"

Lucas wraps his arms more tightly around Fuel and puts his mouth next to Fuel's ear.

"I really love you."

Fuel almost drops Lucas. "Wh-what? Why all of a sudden?"

"I love you," Lucas repeats.

"Oh… you mean like a brother, right? I love you like a brother too," Fuel replies, avoiding dangerous waters.

Lucas is taken aback. "Ah… I guess."

/

When they return home, the two of them change out of their sweaty day clothes.

"I'm gonna go for a walk," Fuel says.

Lucas nods. "I'm going to take a bath, then."

Fuel leaves the house, letting out a long, drawn out sigh. There are too many thoughts buzzing in his head. Lucas' words still echo in his mind: "I love you." What was that all about? He walks around the grassy fields, letting the cool night air calm his mind.

_There's no way he could have meant any other kind of love, is there? I love him too. There's nothing wrong with that. We're brothers. He even said so himself._

Slightly reassured, Fuel decides to return home. Before entering, he peers through one of the windows.

Lucas is naked, having come straight out of the bath. He spots Fuel's dirty, sweaty day clothes lying on the bed and picks them up. Then, Lucas looks around the room, making sure no one is spying on him. Very quickly, Fuel drops out of his line of sight, crouching under the window.

When Fuel decides it is safe to look again, he finds Lucas sitting on the bed, his face buried passionately in Fuel's day clothes.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I know it's been a while since the last update, so sorry bout that m(_ _)m. Anyways, hope you enjoyed. Reviews and such are warmly appreciated :)**


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